It changed from a joyous, ridiculous superhero movie into a series of lingering shots of Gal Gadot’s legs. It clunked with dialogue that all but stopped short of saying ‘hashtag feminism’.

At one point, a female secretary explains all the work that she does for her male boss prompting Wonder Woman to quip, ‘Where I’m from, that’s called slavery.’ The cinema audience broke into a knowing chuckle, but it felt like a cheap laugh. Still, the heavy-handed lines kept coming (‘What I do is not up to you!’).

All of which would be a lot more convincing if Diana Prince – incidentally, a name given to her when Steve Trevor (Chris Pine) interrupts her own introduction – didn’t spend the majority of the film being dragged around by Trevor, who is adamant his mission is more important than hers.

The film clunked with dialogue that all but stopped short of saying ‘hashtag feminism’ (Picture: Warner Bros/DC)

We’re told that this rebooted Wonder Woman is a watershed moment for Hollywood heroines.

Critics are falling over themselves to heap praise on the film, with IMDb boasting an incredible 8.1/10.

It’s broken records for being the biggest live-action box office hit by a female director, but the actual script falls short of smashing any stereotypes – let alone the patriarchy.

As one Twitter user put it: ‘Wonder Woman is a thin, white, cisgender able bodied Zionist. No way in hell I’m watching that ish [sic]’.

Wonder Woman is a thin, white, cisgender able bodied Zionist. No way in hell I'm watching that ish

It says a lot about the film when the Amazons of Themyscira’s council looked more like the harem in Mad Max: Fury Road than a highly trained army of ruthless warriors.

‘Wonder Woman is a thin, white, cisgender able bodied Zionist. No way in hell I’m watching that ish [sic]’. (Picture: Alex Bailey/Warner Bros. Entertainment via AP)The only woman with any form of imperfection was Robin Wright’s character, General Antiope, who sported a prominent battle scar on her shoulder. She looked all the more convincing – and fierce – for it, but where were the other wounded? Or the non-supermodels?

It’s worth pointing out that one of the film’s main antagonist, Dr. Poison, is a facially disfigured woman.

An old photograph reveals that she was once classically beautiful, as if this loss of looks is motive enough for her atrocities.

What about Katniss Everdeen? At least she didn’t have to wear a teenager’s wet dream of a costume to fight in. (Picture: Warner Bros/DC)

This isn’t a critique on how unrealistic a comic book adaptation is because, I get it, it’s a comic book adaptation. It’s not a documentary on gender politics.

But enough already with the gushing think pieces citing Wonder Woman as the role model little girls need.

What about Katniss Everdeen? At least she didn’t have to wear a teenager’s wet dream of a costume to fight in.

Oh, but it’s practical, the film seems to argue, with its shots of Prince trying on cumbersome WWI-era dresses. No, it’s not. What’s practical about having that much flesh exposed when facing gunfire?

And if being semi-naked is the most practical mode in which to save the world, where is Batman’s mankini?

Don’t even get me started on the impracticalities of leaving her long hair down during action scenes. Most women I know can’t even do a spin class without putting their hair in a ponytail. The real wonder here is how it didn’t annoy the hell out of Gal Gadot having her hair fly in her face every time she ran.

Her physical appearance is mentioned throughout the film (Pictures: Clay Enos/REX/Shutterstock)

Speaking of appearance, one admiring character describes Prince as ‘the most beautiful woman you’ve ever seen.’ What impossible standards we set ourselves.

The most highly anticipated on-screen feminist icon not only has super strength, unwavering bravery, and speaks hundreds of languages. She also has to look like Miss (save the) World.

Before anyone points out that Henry Cavill’s Man of Steel wasn’t exactly an average Joe, let me remind you that the whole premise of Clark Kent’s ability to live a normal life is that he is so boy-next-door that he can pop on a pair specs and go unnoticed.

But back to our lassoing heroine. Even when she’s not wearing an armoured cheerleader outift, her male companions make constant reference to her physical appearance.

Can you imagine Lois Lane commenting ‘I’m both frightened and aroused’ after Superman single-handedly brought a bar brawl to its knees? No, but that’s exactly what happened when Prince unleashed a can of whoopass in one memorable scene.

Saying you’re not a feminist, you just believe in equality, is like saying you’re not a vegetarian, you just don’t eat meat. (Picture: Clay Enos/Warner Bros/Kobal/REX/Shutterstock)

In interviews, director Jenkins has said, ‘[Wonder Woman] doesn’t have a chip on her shoulder. That was something I felt … that I really brought in. We had a lot of conversations about feminism and her point of view. She’s not a feminist. It never occurred to her that she would treat somebody differently to somebody else, which is the stronger statement.’

Saying you’re not a feminist, you just believe in equality, is like saying you’re not a vegetarian, you just don’t eat meat. Mind you, considering this film barely scraped the Bechdel test, maybe Jenkins is right to believe that Wonder Woman is no feminist icon.